Not every storm cloud evaporated over Merseyside last Sunday. While Rafael Benítez bid adieu to another Anfield crisis with victory over Manchester United, David Moyes was digesting an 86th-minute defeat at Bolton that left Everton three points above the relegation zone. A third away defeat in six days followed at Tottenham Hotspur in the Carling Cup. Not for the first time, a season where Moyes had envisaged taking the next step is being dismissed as a wasted opportunity and, unlike his Liverpool rival, he has yet to conjure a contrary response.

Aston Villa are the perfect opponents to heighten Moyes' worries at Goodison Park today. For the past two seasons Martin O'Neill's team have strengthened as the Scot would have wished, flirted with Champions League qualification, but ultimately finished one place below Everton. This term began with both clubs harbouring similar expectations and problems, Moyes and O'Neill embarking on a late transfer trolley dash for defenders, but their paths have since veered in opposite directions.

"I can't see this season as a lost cause," the Everton manager said. "I get the feeling people will see our season as a lost cause because of the improvement made by Manchester City, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Sunderland, but I can't. Maybe, without knowing, we are in the process of building a new side. Maybe we are building again and are in the throes of transition just now. It might well be that we finish mid-table but it would be wrong of me to have that as my ambition. My ambition is to finish as high as I possibly can. That hasn't altered."

Moyes' defiance has not been matched by his players in this campaign, one that opened with a 6-1 humiliation at home to Arsenal in the midst of the Joleon Lescott transfer saga, but which has yielded two more points than at the same stage last season. Everton were also out of the Carling Cup and Uefa Cup at this point 12 months ago, before finishing fifth again and reaching the FA Cup final.

Injuries are the principal reason for the stalled progress, with 10 or 11 casualties the recent norm, and why Moyes refused to lambast the inexperienced and disjointed team that slumped to a record 5-0 European defeat at Benfica. It is not the only factor, however. A newly assembled defence, basic individual errors and the poor form of last season's key contributors, such as the £15m record signing Marouane Fellaini, have added to the malaise.

"I definitely expect more from the players available," Moyes added. "A lot of them are playing out of position and doing jobs that are unusual for them but I can't make excuses, they've got to play better no matter where they play.

"We did it last year. We probably had our best spell last season when we had no centre-forwards and people playing out of position, so why should it be any different this year? I try not to look for excuses. I try to make people accountable for whatever job they do. We haven't defended as well as we've done in the past. Over the years we've been pretty solid and hard to play against, but I also think we've missed a lot of chances. It is at both ends at the moment.

"We're always looking for a good result and if it can turn your fortune, then that is what we would like it to do. This week has not been particularly good and we were disappointed, but probably the bigger disappointment was that we didn't take full points against Wolves and Stoke at home."

The Everton manager has a chilling warning for any senior player who feels his position is secure due to the size of the club's casualty list. Moyes said: "I would hate to think that was the way our boys thought but subconsciously maybe there is an element of that. And if that is the case they are going to be in for a fright when the injury situation changes. I'm like an elephant, I don't forget. I don't forget if people don't perform and they let me down."

On paper at least, Moyes arguably has the strongest squad of his Everton tenure at his disposal but denies any claim he is under added pressure as a result. "Managers are always under pressure to get a result but, in my role as a football manager at this club, I don't feel under pressure, no," he states.

"It's about that Saturday night feeling. If you've won you can enjoy a meal with the wife and a bottle of wine if you fancy it, or there's the alternative, which is to pull the curtains and get a Chinese in and hope nobody sees you when you've lost. There have been a few nights with the curtains drawn this season, that's for sure."